This marks the second installment in our news series, Better Know a Bottle Shop. The idea is to profile area liquor stores with strong craft beer selections. If you have ideas for stores we should feature, please let us know in the comments section.

As an unincorporated area of Jefferson County, the community of Evergreen is sprawling. The same could be said for Evergreen Discount Liquors.

The 14,000 square-foot store that shares a shopping center with Safeway off Colorado Highway 74 just north of picturesque Evergreen Lake boasts hardwood floors, a high, lofty vaulted ceiling, a humidity-controlled cigar room, another for rare wine bottles, a hearty wine selection at the front of the store and just as much booze. But what assistant manager and beer buyer Julia York said attracts the most attention is the 38 cooler doors devoted to craft beer.

“Now compared to five or six years ago the amount of craft customers has increased dramatically,” she said. “Before, people would walk in and grab a Fat Tire or an Odell and maybe some Budweiser. But now, where you find everyone shopping and looking and hanging out is in that craft cooler.”

The store has been in its location since 1962, when it was Evergreen Drug. Half of the retail space was devoted to beer, wine and liquor sales, while the other half to greeting cards, porcelain collectibles, gardening supplies and other traditional drug store classics. When the Safeway next door remodeled, Evergreen Drug became Evergreen Discount Liquors and all that it is today. Greg Thomas, who had been the buying manager of the liquor store since 1986, bought the store from the original owner in 2011.

York said the store ranks in the top 15 accounts in the region, which means that distributors include it in orders of special releases and selections other smaller area stores might not get. But since it’s a bit off the beaten path, Evergreen Discount Liquors often has what’s sold out at the big stores down the hill.

“I get a lot of customers come in here and say ‘Oh my god I can’t believe you have this!’ ” York said.

For the regular customers, York said she tries to pay attention to what they like and give them a heads up when something comes in that meets their taste. She’ll also take special orders anytime and reserve sought-after selections on request.

Some recent selections she had to show off included AC Golden’s limited-release Hidden Barrel Russian Imperial Stout (she got a VIP tour at Coors and got a sip from that barrel before its release) and a shelf of Trinity Brewing bottles.

Evergreen residents’ tastes can be as diverse as their community is sprawling, but one thing York knows is that they like it local.

“Our customers in Evergreen they definitely like to support Colorado craft,” she said. “That’s pretty huge in Evergreen; they definitely like to support Colorado beer.”

The weekly tastings – often from 4-6:30 p.m. Fridays and 3-6 p.m. on Saturdays – hosted in the room at the back of the store help both the customers and York get a sense for what they like. The build-your-own six-pack selection that spans three cooler doors also gets a lot of traffic.

One section more and more customers appreciate is where three shelves are stocked with any and every gluten-free beer York can get her hands on. She said she gets a lot of customers who have a gluten allergy or celiac disease and for that reason she also keeps a well-stocked cider selection.

York started working at the store in 2000 part-time during college and became the full-time beer manager in 2004. The store grew alongside Colorado’s beer industry and so did her beer knowledge.

“It’s been a huge learning experience,” she said, adding that her husband works in the industry too. “I read a lot of stuff, go to beer festivals, and have taken some beer classes and wine classes.”

In the beginning, York said she’d basically take any microbrew distributors brought her, but the growth of the industry has quickly outpaced even Evergreen Discount Liquor’s space and York said that now her key strategy is to treat her coolers as valuable real estate.

Some of the 38 cooler doors devoted to craft beer at the 14,00-square-foot Evergreen Discount liquors.

“I have to look at the doors and what’s in them and think ‘Are they paying rent?’ ” she said.

Our new iPad app serves as a guide to metro Denver’s bountiful breweries, beer bars and bottle shops, the holy trinity of craft beer enjoyment for followers and fans. Download the app for iPad .
Next time you head for a beer in Boulder, don’t forget your friend, Beers of Boulder and Boulder County, an iPad app from the Daily Camera. Download the app for iPad .

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In Colorado, our pint glasses overflow with excellent beer. New breweries, new batches, festivals every other week. How lucky are we? First Drafts is The Denver Post's beer blog aimed at helping you keep tabs on the state's ever-expanding craft beer culture. We offer a mash of news, event coverage, homegrown stories, tasting notes and tips to help you imbibe. Expert drinker or homebrewer? Let us know what you're loving about Colorado's beer scene. Not sure exactly what a firkin is? No worries, let us be your guide. Go ahead. Belly up and drink it in!